CHAMPIONS League superstar Gareth Bale has only just scraped into the Top 40 in a poll of the greatest players in history.
The Welsh international, 28, who scored twice for Real Madrid in Saturday’s final against Liverpool, was 35th — with Brazil’s Pele at No1.
The three-time World Cup winner scored an incredible 727 goals during his glittering 21 year career, including 77 for Brazil in 92 appearances.
Widely regarded as football’s first superstar, he is still the youngest player ever to appear in a World Cup final featuring in the culmination of the 1958 tournament aged just 17.
Man Utd legend, George Best, was the highest ranking Brit in the poll commissioned by TV channel, HISTORY, to mark its History of Football season, which runs from 28 May to 10 June.
The former Northern Ireland international came fourth ahead of Argentine great, Diego Maradona.
Dan Korn, Vice-President Programming for HISTORY said: “HISTORY’s special season of football programming aims to ignite an entertaining debate on what were the ultimate historic moments of the sport, who stands as the best player in history, which coaches most shaped the game – and much more.”
Lionel Messi was No2 in the poll for TV channel History.
Best manager was ex-Man Utd boss Sir Alex Ferguson.
Top 40 greatest footballers of all time
- Pelé
- Lionel Messi
- Cristiano Ronaldo
- George Best
- Diego Maradona
- Bobby Moore OB
- Johan Cruyff
- Sir Bobby Charlton CBE
- David Beckham OBE
- Zinedine Zidan
- Thierry Henry
- Franz Beckenbauer
- Eusébio
- Kenny Dalglish MBE
- Ronaldinho
- Ryan Giggs OBE
- Gary Lineker OBE
- Paul Gascoigne
- Ronaldo
- Steven Gerrard MBE
- Denis Law CBE
- Dennis Bergkamp
- Alfredo Di Stéfano
- Ferenc Puskás
- Wayne Rooney
- Sir Tom Finney CBE
- Michael Owen
- Michel Platini
- Jürgen Klinsman
- Lothar Matthäus
- Marco van Basten
- Mohamed Salah
- Bryan Robson OBE
- Lev Yashin
- Gareth Bale
- Zlatan Ibrahimović
- Franco Baresi
- Xavi
- Kevin De Bruyne
- Gianluigi Buffon
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Carried out through OnePoll, the research also identified the greatest manager of all-time as Sir Alex Ferguson CBE, who finished ahead of Brian Clough OBE and Bill Shankly OBE.
The greatest moment in England’s football history was revealed too and unsurprisingly it is the 1966 World Cup win.
But the Three Lions’ second greatest ever moment is the 5-1 win over Germany in 2001, while their third is Paul Gascoigne‘s wondergoal against Scotland at Euro 96.
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